Quintessentially, some of Delhi’s most vocal middle-class citizens are a rather lawless lot. It is part of the staple diet of their version of capital speak, to be able to silence any attempt at routine law enforcement. This, brazen display of unbridled access to the immensely powerful is part of the essential gestalt of every […]

Whatâ€™s wrong with 1975? The recent promotions of 33 from the 1975 batch IAS officers to the ranks of additional secretary has created a quite a stir among their peers. The widespread frustration among the babus, who missed out could be gauged from the fact that as many as 199 officers were waiting to enter […]

Come, take your money Employeesâ€™ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) babus these days are saddled with a weird problem. Lakhs of employees have all but forgotten about their Provident fund accounts. The balances in the Unclaimed Deposit Account have risen sharply over the last three years. The figure which stood at Rs 634.57 crore in 2002- […]

Babu Scientist nexus Following vociferous protests from the ICSSR researchers over appointment of bureaucrats as Member Secretary (MS) of the premier institution, the government has decided to appoint a new MS from the academic fraternity. Prof T.S. Anant of Delhi School of Economics will shortly be taking over as the new MS. In fact the […]

Conferring in Cairo on the subject of truth sounds absurd enough. But public relations makes actually good bed-fellows with truth. Also discovering that Egyptians routinely eat cold rotis makes you wonder about the great civilization. For those who need to know about ground realities, the sense of disbelief about political policies and the truth about […]

New man in finance It appears strange that after the retirement of the last incumbent DC Gupta in July 2004, the post of Finance Secretary was left vacant for almost a year and a half. The wait is finally over. Its not a moment too soon, considering the Budget is now on everybodyâ€™s head! The […]

Yes, Minister The babuâ€“minister tussle in the Delhi Government is taking an interesting turn. At the center of it lies the â€œAnnual Confidential Reportsâ€ (ACRs) of the IAS babus. Delhi being a Union Territory only the Chief Minister and Chief Secretary are endowed with authority to file ACRs. No wonder the IAS babu bunch in […]

The Crorepati Club The business landscape of Delhi has changed beyond measure in the heady buzz of the last 10 years. The emerging Delhi tycoon is bold, brassy and big. He, and unfortunately it’s still largely he, though the she’s too are beginning to emerge, could as easily be in any of the New Age […]